Volkswagen's Spanish unit has announced a new strategic business unit, Seat Urban Mobility, and shown off an e-Kickscooter concept, a first for the 70-year old automaker.
The new operation will integrate all product, service and platform-based mobility products and launch the e-Scooter in 2020.
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The e-Kickscooter concept will complement the range started with the EXS in 2018. The product range is is intended for both ownership and fleets and sharing services offering vehicles on a per use basis.
Seat said Urban Mobility would continue to collaborate with city and public administration officials to analyse the suitability of vehicles engineered for urban mobility such as the Minimo concept, which was unveiled at the last Mobile World Congress.
Urban Mobility will also integrate Respiro, a car sharing platform that operates in Madrid and in the L'Hospitalet de Llobregat area of Barcelona.
Respiro runs a fleet of sustainable vehicles on compressed natural gas (CNG) and these will soon be joined by the new Mii electric just being launched to selected media.
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By GlobalDataThe new unit will also manage the 'kicksharing' service Seat offers in partnership with start-up UFO, enabled by Seat:Code, the automaker's new software development centre.
Seat president Luca de Meo said "this strategic business unit will enable us to focus our efforts on the user's new mobility needs. Seat is the micromobility centre of competence for the Volkswagen group and that means developing purpose designed products for all the brands, not only for Seat. In addition, we will also deliver services and solutions defined to reduce noise, pollution and footprint in the urban areas to improve citizens' life quality."
